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Kenny Peterson with his Side by Side Coffee cart in Woolwich in May. Peterson is leaving Tandem Coffee Roasters after 10 years to tend to his cart full-time. (Photo by Jill Hoyle)

Veteran Tandem Coffee + Bakery employee Kenny Peterson ended his decade-long tenure Tuesday so he can give his full attention to his own coffee business.

Tandem announced Peterson’s departure on social media. “We cannot stress enough how grateful we are to Kenny for all of his hard work, dedication and care he’s brought to Tandem over this past decade,” their post reads in part.

Peterson started as a barista at Tandem in May 2016. He went on to become lead barista, then wholesale manager in 2018. Since the pandemic, Peterson has also overseen Tandem’s e-commerce.

“I always wanted to create something of my own,” he said. “Eventually it kind of clicked that the mobile coffee cart business made sense for me.”

Three years ago, Peterson started Side by Side Coffee, a mobile coffee cart that caters special events in Maine, Massachusetts and New Hampshire. Side by Side uses Tandem coffee, where Peterson will be a wholesale customer. “It’s grown to where it needs full-time attention and I can’t split my attention anymore.”

Peterson said he will miss working with his colleagues and the guidance and mentorship of Tandem owners Kathleen and Will Pratt. “I’m constantly surrounded by great people there,” he said. “And the Pratts have been super-supportive.”

Tim Cebula has been a food writer and editor for 23 years. A former correspondent for The Boston Globe food section, his work has appeared in Time, Health, Food & Wine, CNN.com, and Boston magazine,...

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